Seared Halibut with Haricots Verts, Scallions, and White Wine Sauce

This recipe offers a prime example of cooking à la minute because the entire dish can be prepared and executed very quickly. (It also uses few enough
ingredients that you could purchase all of them in the express lane of your
local supermarket on the way home from work.) After sautéeing the halibut, the fish is removed from the pan, which is then deglazed with white wine and fresh lemon juice. Butter is swirled in gradually to yield a rich, flavorful sauce  punctuated by scallions, capers, and diced tomato  that is simply poured over the fish; its pleasing citric acidity and buttery richness make it a perfect foil for the halibut.

Preparation

In a pot of boiling salted water set over high heat, cook the haricots verts for 3 to 4 minutes, until tender. Drain and place them in the center of a large, warm serving platter. Cover and keep warm.

Season the halibut on both sides with salt and pepper. In a 12-inch saute pan, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Cook the fish for about 3 minutes, until lightly browned. Turn, reduce the heat to medium, and cook about 4 minutes longer, until the fish is opaque in the center and browned on both sides. Put the fish on the platter with the beans and cover to keep warm.

Pour off any oil in the pan and add the wine and lemon juice. Raise the heat to high and deglaze the pan by scraping up any browned bits with a wooden spoon. Cook until the sauce reduces by half, about 2 minutes. Reduce the heat and stir in the butter, a piece at a time, to enrich and flavor the sauce. Add the scallions, capers, and tomato. Season with salt and pepper, and pour over the fish on the platter. Serve immediately.

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Recent Review

This is excellent! I only had mahimahi on hand, and, other than reducing butter by 1/3, I made as directed. The kids loved it, too (though they left half their capers on their plates). I will definitely make this again.